The US Navy


	U.S. Navy Fact Sheet MK 38 - 25 mm machine gun system Description The MK-38 is a 25-mm machine gun installed for ship self-defense to counter High Speed Maneuvering Surface Targets (HSMST). Background The MK 38 was first employed aboard combatant and auxiliary ships conducting Mid-East Force escort operations and during Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm. MK 38 Mod 1s are maintained in a rotatable pool for temporary installation aboard deployed ships. Following the October 2000 attack on USS Cole (DDG 67), Task Force Hip Pocket identified an improved MK 38 Machine Gun System (MGS) as a means to increase shipboard self defense against small boat threats. In 2003, the Chief of Naval Operations documented the requirement and directed the development and fielding of the MK 38 Mod 2. Installed aboard CG, DDG, FFG, LSD, LPD, LHD, LHA, LCC, PC, OSV, and USCG FRC class ships and planned for installation aboard CVN, AS, and MK VI class ships, the MK 38 Mod 2 MGS is a low cost, stabilized self defense weapon system that dramatically improves ships' self-defense capabilities.

	Point Of Contact Office of Corporate Communication Naval Sea Systems Command (OOD) Washington, D.C. 20376

	General Characteristics
	Primary Function: (Mod 1) Single barrel, air cooled, semi- and full-automatic, manually trained and elevated machine gun system.
	Contractor: Contractor Mod 1: Designed and assembled by Crane Division, Naval Surface Warfare Center; components procured from various contractors. Date Deployed: 1986. Contractor Mod 2: BAE Systems Minneapolis, MN; Rafael, Haifa, Israel. Date Deployed: 2005; 192 systems installed as of Sept. 2012.
	Date Deployed: 1986.
	Range: 2700 yards (effective range)
	Type Fire: Single shot; 180 rounds per minute automatic.
	Caliber: 25 mm (1 inch).
	Guidance System: Mod 1: N/A,unstabilized, manually trained and elevated. Guidance System Mod 2: Stabilized, remote control with electro-optic fire control system and auto-tracking capability.

	Last Update: 19 October 2012